One particularly advantageous application of high-frequency power amplifiers relates to the design of an amplification stage for mobile telephony handsets and, more particularly, the design of multi-standard reconfigurable power amplifiers, in other words amplifiers that are capable of adapting to the specifications of various telecommunications standards.
Thus, for example, such a reconfigurable power amplifier must be capable of operating both according to the UMTS (WCDMA) standards and also to the GSM, DCS or PCS standards.
The notion of reconfigurability indicates that these amplifiers must be capable of dynamically modifying their properties according to the standard being used at a given moment in time, but also according to the power level of an incident signal that is applied to it in order for it to work at an optimum power level.
Indeed, according to certain standards, in particular the GSM and GSM 1800 (DCS) standards, owing to the type of modulation employed, the power of the signals is relatively high, which implies a particular constraint for RF applications.
For this reason, there is a need in the art to provide a power amplifier that is reconfigurable, in particular in terms of power, in order to dynamically respond to the specific constraints that are imposed on it.